Overdick

BorWin beta topsides has been successfully installed in the German Bight of the North Sea, about 53 nautical miles North-North-West of the island of Borkum. The step marks the completion of the most critical phase in the offshore campaign.

The BorWin beta platform will provide the capacity for transmitting 800 MW of energy generated by offshore windfarms (e.g. Global Tech 1) into the electric power grid. The BorWin beta topsides is designed with a watertight hull allowing it to be fabricated at a shipyard and wet towed to field by tugs without a transport barge. The 2700 tonne jacket substructure with the cable tower attached had been installed in 40 metres of water in an earlier campaign in 2013.

Once at site, the topsides was positioned over the substructure and the platform legs were lowered to make contact with the subsea pile heads. With all six platform legs resting secure on the piles, the topsides was jacked up to its target elevation of 20 metres above sea level by means of the temporary hydraulic jacking system.

With its topsides weight of 13400 tonnes during the installation, the BorWin beta platform sets a new record for self-installing HVDC platforms, exceeding its sister platform Helwin alpha which was installed in 2013. The capacity of the jacking systems for the platforms were scaled according to the topsides weight and thus allowed for installation of the complete topsides in one operation, eliminating the need for multiple expensive offshore lifts and minimizing the requirements for offshore hook-up and commissioning. The concept of self-installing platforms allows for lifting operations which are beyond the capacity of offshore cranes available, thus providing greater flexibility in terms of design and fabrication as well as adapting to a growing topsides weight as a project evolves.

OVERDICK’s concept for self-installing platforms continues to demonstrate that it is the ideal solution for ever growing demands in topsides weight.

Borwin beta Installation – time lapse video